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Sam Knight - page 59

Sam Knight has 859 articles published.

Backward-Looking Classification Normal, State Dept. Says, Amid Clinton Email Dump

Amid the first release of emails sent to and from a private email network used for official business by then-department head Hillary Clinton, the State Department said that electronic communications are routinely given “upgraded” security classification “several times every month” in response to public records requests. Acting department spokesperson Marie Harf said that backward-looking reviews led to an increase in pre-publication classification of “less than two sentences” in the 296-page Friday dump. The phrases, part of a 2012 email sent to Clinton, were upgraded to… Keep Reading

Bill Expanding Inspector General Subpoena Power Advances in House

Legislation that would expand the authority of inspectors general to conduct investigations advanced through the House on Tuesday. The bill, HR 2395, passed the chamber’s Committee on Oversight and Government Reform by a voice vote, with no audible dissent. Both the active chair, Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) and ranking member Elijah Cummings described the measure,which was only just introduced on Monday, as long-needed. They singled it out as praiseworthy for seeking to enable IGs to compel testimony from contractors and former officials. “Congress is long… Keep Reading

I Got Your “Fact And Scrutiny” Right Here, Pal: Sen. Warren Issues T.P.P. Report After Obama Accuses Her of Lies

Last week, nasty infighting between Democrats broke out over President Obama’s public claim that Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Ma.) criticism of his trade agenda didn’t pass “the test of fact and scrutiny.” Warren’s progressive ally, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) charged that the president was acting in a sexist way, and the White House subsequently demanded an apology from Brown. Warren, meanwhile, remained silent on the matter. But on Monday her office issued what can only be seen as a de facto response to President Obama’s broad criticism… Keep Reading

Harry Reid Compares Peaceful Palestinian Movement With Jewish Support to Holocaust — “Glimpses of That Same Hate”

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, discussing the Holocaust from the Senate floor, said that there “are still glimpses of that same hate” in a secular and peaceful movement protesting Israel’s occupation of Palestine at academic institutions throughout the US and around the world. Reid said Wednesday morning that “in the midst of campus debates about boycotts of Israel, Jewish students have felt increasingly intimidated,” citing a controversial New York Times report published Sunday. He brought up the genocide against Jews in Europe in a speech… Keep Reading

Obama Admin. Criticizes Release of Former Child Soldier and 10-Year Gitmo Inmate

The Obama administration said it opposes a Canadian judge’s decision to allow the conditional release of an ex-Guantanamo prisoner captured in Afghanistan as a teenager by American troops. State Department Spokesperson Jeff Rathke said that the US supports the Canadian government’s move to contest the ruling that saw Omar Khadr, now 28 years-old, conditionally freed from prison while waiting to challenge his prior conviction and guilty plea in an American appeals court. “The United States supports Canada in its efforts to combat terrorism,” Rathke initially… Keep Reading

With An Eye on Chicago, Attorney General Lynch Pledges More Federal Involvement in Gang-Busting

Attorney General Loretta Lynch said Thursday that she is looking at “finding ways to bolster” crackdowns under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. In a back and forth at a senate appropriations subcommittee hearing with a lawmaker who represents a city seen as a hotbed for violent crime, Lynch noted that Justice Department Criminal Division head Leslie Caldwell and Deputy Chief for Policy and RICO Review Doug Crow “are committed to this as well.” She also commented that she had spoken to the… Keep Reading

Iraq War Architects, Warning “Prestige, Influence and Leadership Are On The Line,” Urge Passage of T.P.P.

Former Pentagon chiefs, top spooks, and key architects of the 2003 invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq urged Congress on Thursday to pass the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), saying the deal has “tremendous strategic benefits.” David Petraeus, Donald Rumsfeld, Colin Powell and Leon Panetta joined 13 other retired military leaders in signing on to a letter to Congressional leaders, which declared the potential failure of the TPP to have “harmful strategic consequences.” “TPP in particular will shape an economic dynamic over the next several decades that… Keep Reading

Occupy…Ourselves? Federal Reserve Chair Cites Research Bashing Financialization and Rent Seeking

Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen donned something of a critical theorist’s cap on Wednesday, citing research that laments financialization and the subsequent “’rent seeking’ activity that may promote inefficiency” it allegedly caused. “Recent research has raised important questions about the benefits and costs of the rapid growth of the financial services industry in the United States over the past 40 years,” Yellen noted at a gathering sponsored by the Institute for New Economic Thinking in Washington. According to her prepared remarks, on “Finance and Society,” Yellen… Keep Reading

Defense Secretary Warns Liberal Interventionist Senator About Syria Plan

Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter warned that a plan for humanitarian intervention four senators want the president to consider would amount to a “major combat mission.” Carter told Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) on Wednesday at a senate appropriations subcommittee hearing that the creation of safe zones within Syria is something that would be “contested” by both the Syrian government and fundamentalist insurgent groups like the Islamic State (ISIL). “We would need to fight to create such a space and then fight to keep such a… Keep Reading

State Dept. Okay With Self-Regulation for Hillary, Amid Ethics Storm

The State Department on Monday acknowledged it is aware of reports that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton may have failed to fully abide by the terms of an ethics agreement she made before joining the Obama administration, but declined to characterize the infringement as a “problem.” Acting deputy spokesperson Jeff Rathke, when asked by reporters at a daily press briefing, said that the department was content to endorse Clinton’s self-regulatory approach to the revelations. “We welcome the new commitments from the Clinton Foundation to… Keep Reading

Congressmen Announce Plan to Strengthen Oversight of Military, Will Force Vote on I.S.I.L. Fight

Two Congressmen set the stage for political theater later this month, vowing on Friday to force a debate and vote on the ongoing war against the Islamic State (ISIL). Reps. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) and Walter Jones (R-N.C.) said on CSPAN’s Washington Journal that they will introduce a privileged resolution to mandate the parliamentary moves on the military operations, and accused Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) of leading an effort by Congressional leaders to avoid fulfilling a legislative branch obligation mandated by the Constitution.… Keep Reading

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